The 2025 Americas Grand Prix delivered excitement from start to finish, with pre-race drama, crashes and thrilling battles all added to the action throughout the weekend. All eyes were on Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) ahead of the Grand Prix, but it would be Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) who would grab victory after the #93 crashed out. With plenty of fresh stories emerging from Austin, check out the best talking points below!

"It was difficult"

Marc Marquez had a very dramatic Sunday, becoming the first rider to make the change to slick tyres – a tough decision for the #93: "It was difficult, but I was clever and quiet. I mean, I'm still quiet right now." Going into further detail, Marc Marquez explained his decision: "When 8-7 minutes remained, I realised that we made a mistake with the wet tyres. But I also understood that most of the riders picked the wet tyres. So, I asked Rigamonti, my chief mechanic, ‘Is the second bike ready?’ He told me yes, and then I said, ‘OK, maybe I will leave the grid’. Because I knew that if more than 10 riders followed me, the start would be delayed, and everybody would start on the grid."

It was also an early end to Marc Marquez’s hopes of victory, with the #93 crashing on Lap 9: "At Turn 4, I was too far on the kerb. And I lost it super quick. Maybe I cut it too much, and I don't know if it was still a bit wet or something like that."

"I was thinking about it"

It was a dream result for Francesco Bagnaia, closing the gap in the Championship after securing the maximum 25 points available: "It’s an incredible feeling. I’m very happy. It’s the first time I’ve won here at COTA. I know that this win comes because of a crash for Marc. He was faster than us than everybody today. I was just trying to match the pace in the best way possible. As soon as I saw him crash, I was just trying to continue pushing to open the gap to Alex because, at that moment, he was still very close."

Speaking about the drama on the grid, the Italian added that he was keeping a close eye on his teammate: "Honestly, when I saw that it was starting to dry, the starting grid was completely dry and looking to the first corner was dry, it was a dry bike with wet tyres because the situation was like this, I said, 'Marc is not seated on his bike', so he’s thinking about it. I was thinking about it. As soon as I saw him start running, I said, ‘Okay, I go."

“I will maybe try”

Jorge Martin (Aprilia Racing) made his return to the paddock, spending the weekend watching the action from the Aprilia garage. On Friday, Martin held a press conference, taking the opportunity to discuss his preseason crash in more detail: "I was already straight when I touched the outside curb. I don’t know if it was the paint or something. It was a really, really big crash, and then I broke my foot again. Four bones in my foot and then three more bones in my hand. So, yeah, it was a really bad one."

However, looking towards Round 4 in Qatar, Martin is beginning to consider the chances of trying to ride: "It seems like yes. But I won’t ride any bike until that moment because I don’t want to have the same again— imagine if I go training next week and I break, I don’t know, my head or my neck! So yeah, I will wait for Qatar. I don’t know, maybe I will go there and ride, or maybe I cannot continue. I don’t know what my condition will be, but for sure I won’t be 100%. But I will maybe try."

"You are crazy"

It was the end of another stunning weekend for Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP), with the #73 now leading the World Championship by a single point: "If you said to me that in the third race, you will be leading the Championship, I would have said to you, ‘you are crazy’. I’m super happy; I think we have had a proper beginning of the season, being really constant all the time. We are P2, but I’m happy with that. I don’t have any problem finishing P2 from here until the end. We need to enjoy the moment."

"I started to ride in a completely different way"

Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) secured his first Grand Prix podium of 2025, claiming P3 after a difficult winter: "I’m just so happy. We put so much work into it. This winter has been so long for us. Too many injuries, too many hours at the physio. To be back where we should be from the beginning is a super feeling."

However, the Italian had to dig deep, pushing hard in the closing stages of a very physical Grand Prix: "After Lap 7, I said, let’s have a look on the pit board about the laps remaining, and there were 11 laps. So, I was like, 'Oh, man. That’s a problem.' My left arm was already completely exhausted. So, I started to ride in a completely different way."

"Rome wasn't built in a day"

Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) crossed the line as the top Yamaha rider on Sunday, securing the final spot in the top five: "The bike was working well. We got away to a decent start, which is half the battle here. Especially that first lap here was kind of chaotic with all of the patches. And when you've got all the bikes in a row, you can't see what's coming up, you're just following with blind faith. But I got a good start and then settled into my rhythm."

Looking ahead to the future, Miller continues to analyse how Yamaha can close the gap to Ducati: "We're chasing the red bikes at the moment. Obviously, they hit the nail on the head with last year's package because that's really strong as well. But, like you say, we've got extra testing and all the things to try to improve. So, as they say, Rome wasn't built in a day."

"Totally a different bike"

Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) had a problematic Sunday, crashing on the sighting lap before crossing the line in P10: "The potential was there. I think, like I said, it was quite a big mess with the electronics especially, that was the thing that disturbed me the most. And then, of course, like I said, first, I didn't even try the different chassis. I was straight into the race with a different link and a different swingarm, so it was totally a different bike. But it was also my mistake to crash in the sighting lap."

"I've been very competitive"

Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) had a strong start to his Grand Prix, battling for P8 before a crash forced the Frenchman to drop to P17. However, Zarco leaves the weekend with hope for the upcoming rounds: "For sure disappointed, but from where we started on Saturday when I had zero feeling, and I was slow, I've been very competitive today. So that's the good thing about today and a good sign for the next races. I'm not in the running for the Championship, that's why I cannot be too disappointed, but as I'm used to scoring some points after a good race, for sure, it could have been a better Sunday."